Crazy
by SassyAngel
Summary: But then again, Rikku is crazy like that. Maybe they both are. RikkuGippal.


Disclaimer - I don't own FFX-2.

**Crazy**

"_Cid's girl, be reasonable._"

"_I'm tired of being left behind. It's my turn! I should be able to have some sort of story on my own, a grand beginning and ending! I'm… so tired of waiting for it._"

"_C'mon, you know you don't mean that. I thought you liked it here._"

"_Don't try to be all understanding now! You are such… such a big meanie! You lead me on and make me think that… And then you go stand me up for some other girl!_"

"_She didn't –_"

"_Tell Paine and Yunie that I'll be fine. See you around Gippal._"

She's going to be the death of him, they both know it.

It's in her crazy grin when she bothers to glance back at him, blonde hair whipping like promise through the wind, and the fact that every time he manages to gain an inch he suddenly loses a mile. There's the dull roar of their sand speeders as they tear across the shifting desert, following a trail only marked by wear, the faint cheering of the crowd as they draw farther and farther away from them, and the sight of women more scantily clad than Rikku signalling the beginning of the race all but faded from his memory. He can't believe that Rikku does this ever other day, has been doing this for the past month or so, and still be alive. It's obvious, she's crazy.

He hears her laugh, the sound of her whooping as they slam around a corner, sand like burning flecks of glass embedding themselves on every bare patch of skin. He wonders just how she can wear so little yet not be scorched by the heat. A girl like Rikku is made of risks, made of some sort of weak and strong material that is smooth like oil and soft like the fruits she loves so much, and he knows that she's as hard to catch as all the grains of sand there are in this desert.

"_Do you know how long I've been looking for you?_"

"_For as long as I've been gone?_"

"_Cute, but cut it out. We need to go back. Everyone is worried about you, Cid's girl. Stop being stubborn, you made your point._"

"_You don't get it, do you? I'm doing something for myself for once. I can't even have this tiny vacation! And if they really cared so much, why are you the only one here?_"

"_You know they're all busy. They'd be here if they could._"

"_I'll send them a sphere. Happy?_"

"_This is dangerous Cid's girl._"

"_Sand racing? Please. I've been doing deep sea diving all my life and now you're worried about me now? A bit too late Gippal._"

The starting line had been a blur, sand speeders reeving hungrily like large fiends starving for sand. A woman with a shorter skirt than Rikku with legs almost as shapely had stalked out in front of them, seductive grin on her lips that had nothing on the smirking girl beside him, leaning forward on her vehicle already, red rimmed goggles pulled over her swirling green eyes. An article of clothing fluttered away on the wind and all he could hear was the rapid jumping of his heart as he watched Rikku peal away. He'd let her go so many times it was almost painful to watch her leave him behind this time. Months of searching had led him here, where she was hiding right under his nose, and just like when he found her again after letting her go to join the Crimson Squad, he promised himself he wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

What they had he couldn't name, but he could feel. Whenever she laughed he felt as if his life was complete, every time she smiled for him he felt a goofy, heart warmed grin forming on his own face. With her, there need be no other, and that's what scared him. He was used to making friends that he could easily dispose of, having co-workers whose adoration he revelled in but did not need, and trail of ex-lovers, girlfriends, flings that were always willing to have a second chance at trying to rope him into commitment. But Rikku… Just with a glance beneath lowered lashes she could… He gunned his borrowed sand speeder as harshly as he could and gave chase. Her scarf fluttered behind her like petals of a forgotten childhood.

_Once upon a time, a boy met a girl. The girl had just lost her mother, and had run away wreathed in orange, the Al Bhed color for morning, like the sun sinking beneath the sand. The girl had lost tears like sunrays, and the boy was sure he had never seen anyone so wretched before, and somehow so beautiful. He made her laugh by telling a horrible joke, and the boy knew he had been wrong. She had been beautiful when her face was covered in tears, but she was breathtaking when she smiled. _

_The boy and the girl quickly became best friends, running throughout Home like sand monkeys, covering themselves in grease like fish in water, and arguing and teasing and banding together to pull pranks on the girl's Brother like their entire life was seashells drifting on the wave clouds. Together, they were carefree. Together, they were innocent. Together, they were happy. It was shattered when Sin snarled up from the sea of their nightmares. To protect the girl, the boy left. Being with her was good, but keeping Sin far away from her, well, that was better._

This was it. This was the leap he had to take. He had to show her that he was no longer the foolish boy who was scared of what she represented, the risks, the crazy smiles, the knowledge of never having to be alone, and he was willing to embrace her craziness as long as she forgave him. The wind is screaming in his ears, insisting that this is all madness and that he could die doing such an insane stunt, but at the same time, the sun in beaming down on him. He can't lose this chance. He can't lose her.

It takes some expert manoeuvring to get close enough to her speeder so that they're nearly neck and neck, the competition long since having been left behind a long time ago. She looks surprised to see him keeping pace with her, and it blossoms easily into a smile. He leaps. They both tumble off of their speeders, Rikku shrieking in his ears as the pair of them slide onto the sand, Gippal taking the brunt of the blow because it was his idea to tackle her off of her sand speeder in the first place.

"You're crazy!" She's screaming, trying to wriggle out of his grip, but she's somewhere between laughing and being angry that he can't take her seriously. They're entangled, and he's never felt so alive, never been able to feel her heart gasping so loudly as now, both of them trying not to eat her braids and the sand kicked up by the speeders that jet by them. The race is forgotten easily.

"It's because I met you! It rubbed off on me! Come back with me Rikku!" He's begging, tickling, teasing, and all she does is laugh. But then again, Rikku is crazy like that. Maybe they both are.

Author's Notes Random one shot used to get out some Rikku/Gippal fangirlishness I have. A bit random and it might not make sense, but I find that I like the kind of random, poetic form of writing instead of just the straight up descriptions. Review?


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